[Jeeplover]

The other night I was preheating my oven and suddenly the heating element burst into flames. I let it cool down and tried again but it never got above a low warming. Do you think I need to replace my heating element? The oven is original with the house which was built in the late 80's.

[denman]

Here are your parts
Replacement parts for General Electric JKP62G*K3 Electric range | AppliancePartsPros.com

Unplug the unit or flip the beaker off.
This is very important as many units still have power going to one side of the element even with the element shut off.
Undo the screw holding the element to the back of the unit and gently pull it into the oven cavity.
Remove the wires from the element.
It is a good idea to clip something (clothespin etc.) onto the wires so they do not disappear into the back of the unit.
Check the element with a meter should be around 20 ohms.
You may be able to see where it blew out.
If open (infinite ohms) it replacing.

Now for the bad news.
Often when an element flames out it also takes out other parts.
And since many of the parts for this unit are obsolete, I would check that there is 240 volts going to the wires when it should.
This may be a job for a pro as 240 is very dangerous and there is the possibility of getting hurt or shorting out to the frame.
OR
Just gamble that everything else is OK and replace the element.
The element looks relatively cheap.